Improve Your Photo Booth With 90 Free Effects [Mac]

Every Mac that comes with an iSight is loaded with Photo Booth. When I was Mac-less, I used to frequent Apple stores and somehow Photo Booth seemed to appeal to me then. Sadly, after I bought a Mac for myself, the attraction didn’t last very long and later, I sort of forgot about this nifty application which attracted me in the first place.

To bring back the romance, I went on a search to see if I could add more effects to Photo Booth. There were only a few interesting pre-packaged ones and most of them had something to do with image distortion (squeeze, bulge, dent, mirror etc.). That was fun for a while but I need the “Wow” factor back desperately.

In my search, I managed to uncover a few sites that offer a good collection of free Photo Booth effects.

From B-L-A-C-K-O-P, I found CatEye, which is a collection of 5 sets of effects. Each set has its own theme:

From another site called Macpoupou Factory, I found a collection of Mac Photobooth effects which has been around for quite some time: MoreIchatEffects. After adding these effects, I realised that I have been missing out on a lot of fun! The effects are incredibly awesome beyond the ones Apple provide, especially Hologram – if you’re a Star Wars fan, you’ll love this one. It’s strangely uncanny.

I can’t remember how I managed to find this next site but it offers 4 Photo Booth effects (Leopard only), from which I only like one. Visit the site and guess which one it is and let me now in the comments. (Hint: Did you know that Photo Booth has the ability to record video? You can ask Bush what he thought about the shoe).

Finally, a Photo Booth effect that must not be left out: Obamafy. Following in the footsteps of President-Elect Barack Obama, you can now quickly and simply create your “Hope” posters. Remember, Leopard only.

UPDATE: Obamafy crashes Photo Booth on Snow Leopard. At the time of writing, it worked on Leopard. Save the effect in /Users/{your username}/Library/Compositions.

In order to remove unwanted effects, just delete them from the appropriate folder. Keep in mind that if you add a lot of new effects at once, Photo Booth will crash while loading them. It’s best to add one set at a time.

Also, these effects will work with iChat! So, you can fool your friends into thinking that something’s gone wonky with your iSight or that they’re really seeing you through a hologram.

Got more effects to share? Know about other ways to bring back the fun to Photo Booth? Share with us in your comments. Lastly, if you’d like to use your iSight for something more productive, check out my article on Gawker and Eyesight.

UPDATE: I strongly advise you to install each set of effects individually. Remember to quit Photo Booth before installing. To uninstall, empty the ~/Library/Compositions or /Library/Compositions folder.

If Photo Booth becomes unresponsive, Force Quit the application and delete the effects from the Compositions folder.

Roberto Cisneros

Jones

ethan

Bob

December 31, 2008

Now my photo booth crashes incessantly. Thanks!

Jackson Chung

December 31, 2008

Hmmm, I had that problem as well. I stated that at the end of my article. Photo Booth can’t render the effects properly if you add all of them at once. You need to add them one set at a time and try browsing through the effects with the arrows, avoid clicking the squares

Gregory Solomon

June 8, 2009

Same here. When you click on the next box for effects it crashes. So use command and the arrow keys to cycle through. it works this way

clo

January 7, 2010

umm how do u uninstall … i cant use my photobooth anymore! arrrg! It keeps crashing!

Jackson

Rich

January 5, 2009

Having same problem as Bob above me. I now understand how I should have installed it properly, but what do I do now that the damage is done? How can I make photoshop work normally again? Each time I try to use an effect photoshop closes. Thanks!

Jackson

January 5, 2009

It’s actually quite easy, you’ll need to remove the effects. They’re stored in /Users/{your username}/Library/Compositions or /Library/Compositions depending on the user level which you installed them. Try removing until you find that Photo Booth works again, then re-add the effects slowly.

Jazz

June 17, 2009

I did this, and I can NOT find my photobooth. I checked everywhere. I tried the Mac OS X Install Disc, and I’m not sure where I download it. I couldn’t find “INSTALL PHOTOBOOTH” sort of thing. PLEASE HELP. I need help with this. I can’t find it! AND IT’S DRIVING ME NUTS.

Jazz

October 27, 2009

I looked there, and it’s not there anymore. I still have the effects on my photobooth, but when in the Library/compositions… It’s not there. :( Help!??

mary

Jackson

Tracy

silkina Ahluwalia

January 21, 2009

i have deleted the apps from my mac but it is still in my photobooth how do i get rid of it from my photobooth!!! its making it slow. someone help me. i went to library and everything bt i cant find the application i moved it to trash already but it’s still in my photobooth these effects!! i downloaded both the cateye and moreichateffects.

how do i delete it permanentlt??

Jackson Chung

January 21, 2009

Hi, take a deep breath and calm down.

This happens when you load too many effects into Photo Booth, like I stated in my article

First, you’ll need to go to /Library/Composition and delete everything in that folder. Those are the effects. Then, you’ll need to load the effects a few at a time. That lessens the burden on Photo Booth to render the graphics.

Let me know if it works.

kate

January 4, 2010

my compositions folder is empty, i’d like to remove them from photobooth. i don’t know how to get them off. i have leopard.

SARAh Coplan

February 1, 2009

PLEASE PLEAAAASE HELP ME
THIS IS MAKING MY COMPUTER SOOOOOOSSOSOSO SLOW
and i dont know how to delete it!
i tried the compositions thign but i dontwana delete the originall photo booth effects!
just thesseee onesss !
and theseeee ones arnt showing up in composition plllllllllllllllllllllllz plz help asap

Jackson

February 1, 2009

The empty compositions folder you are referring to belongs to your home folder /Users/You/Library/Compositions/

You need to access the Compositions folder on your root drive /hard drive/Library/Compositions/ everything in there are the effects you added. You can delete everything to get your Photo Booth running properly again.

Razan Anabtawi

March 4, 2009

heeey!
ok, so i downloaded these effects and i really like them, but there are a few that i downloaded a while ago that i wanna get rid of the, how can i do that?
its making my photo booth SLOWW
pleaseeee help mee
THANKS A LOT

Jackson

March 5, 2009

Please read the comments above about the Compositions folder

Mik

June 18, 2009

Razan how did you download it….
what did you press where is the writing download??? i really wanna download these effects but how!?!?!?!?!?

lauren hays

Jackson

Katy

April 5, 2009

I want to uninstall the effects, because they are making my macbook extremely slow. I have deleted everything off of my computer, and the effects are no longer (nor ever were) in my compositions folder but they are still showing up. Any advice?

Jackson

April 6, 2009

Please read the article above regarding the Compositions folder. The Compositions folder is in your root drive (hard disk) not your home folder (the one with your username)

jj

January 28, 2010

MY COMPOSITION FOLDER IS EMPTY BUT THE EFFECTS ARE STILL THERE.

YOU HAVENT ANSWERED THIS QUESTION.

HOW DO YOU UNINSTALL THEM?

COMPOSITION FOLDER IS EMPTY EMPTY EMPTY = NOTHING IS IN IT.

kate

January 28, 2010

make sure you check both composition folders. there are two. Nothing this guy has said has helped me at all, so i figured it out by myself. it actually got to the point where i had to reinstall everything on my computer because they screwed it up so bad. anyway if you go into HD/System/Library, there is a compositions folder in there. Also, if you just go into HD/Library, there is a compositions folder there too. The latter is where i found all mine, not in Systems like people say. don’t bother picking and choosing ones to keep, just dump it. you might have to reinstall Photo Booth to get back the original effects but that’s easy enough as long as you don’t have Snow Leopard lol. Hope this helps.

lm

???

May 24, 2009

will this slow down my computer/make it crash/do anything harmfull to it???????????????????????????? because i REALLY want them but im afraid something bad will happen to my computer. and that would be bad because its a brand new computer and i share it with the rest of my family so everyone would get mad if i ruin the computer. please answer!!!!

lily

Jackson Chung

May 28, 2009

Dear MUO readers,

Due to the large amount of comments, I am not able to answer each one individually. The article is pretty self-explanatory. Each effect set comes with its own installer.

Depending on the level which you install, whether is “For this user only” or “For all users of this computer”, your effects will either be located at /Library/Compositions or /Users/{your username}/Library/Compositions, respectively.

Do not overload PhotoBooth with a lot of effects at once because it will try to parse everything during which time your Mac might experience some unresponsiveness.

To remove, just delete the effects from the aforementioned folders where it has been installed into.

lol

May 31, 2009

lol. i can see ur getting rly frustrated. they r all asking the same questions XD. just read the comments above people!

nafisaht

June 4, 2009

I wan’t photo booth !!! But i don’t have macbook !!! Can photo booth install in a laptop ??

Sally

October 24, 2009

the link will get you to the web site where you can download an app that only requires your computer to be a mac, whether you have an in-built camera or not :)
Just buy a plug-in webcam, and it should allow you to take photos using it

Jackson Chung

McCain/Palin

June 26, 2009

YEAH, OKAy, OBAMA SUCKS, I am not DOWNLOADING THIS THING BECAUSE OF THAT. OH, AN EFFECT THAT CANT BE LEFT OUT? GIVEN ME A F*CKIN BREAK!!!WELL, I HOPE THAT YOU ALL HAVE FUN BING TOTAL LOSERS, AND DONT EVEN TRY AND COMMENT ON THIS, THERE’S NOTHING U CAN SAY TO IT. NUFF SAID

erika

Emileeeeeeeeee

June 27, 2009

help!
i dont know how do download them, and i have one annoying one from a nother stuid download how do i get ride of it and how do i even get to the library help and go so slow a 3 year old can understand

Jackson Chung

danielle

Aaron

July 13, 2009

The CatEye Effects do not show up in the compositions folder with the rest of the effects, nor can i find them anywhere on my mac, and yet they show up in photobooth and make it crash and the like. so how then can i delete them if they are not with the other effects or anywhere else?

Jackson Chung

July 31, 2009

They should be in the user level compositions folder [your home folder name]/Library/Compositions/

anonymous

Smith

manuel

August 9, 2009

Question,

Is the any way I CAN use this great effects in my sony video cam? Thanks

Sally

October 24, 2009

If you don’t buy a mac that has the inbuilt camera, you can still download an app that is almost identical to photo booth but with a few little differences, and it will take photos with your plug-in webcam or camera. Here is the link to the web site where you can download it:
freakshowsoftware.com/

julien menth

Sep

bryan

russell Nicholas

September 14, 2009

this might help some of you, my photo booth started crashing also after i added in the new effects. but after i went into the ‘get info’ option on photo booth and checked ‘run in 32-bit mode’ it started to work fine :)

ee

russell Nicholas

open finder, then go to macintosh HD, then applications. find Photo Booth. right click and select get info. there should be a check box that says open in 32 bit mode. it should be there.

Betty

September 23, 2009

I have the same ‘issue’ as ee, I have followed the instructions and have no option to click to run in 32-bit, just ‘Open in Rosetta’. Does anyone have any further advice for those in this position? Thank you in advance.

tempeste

September 16, 2009

i cant delete the ones with the 80’s and all that. ( I did the whole library/compositions/ thing and it is not working on my computer and the application keeps closing automatically. this computer is brand new so i am not sure what to do.

Iza

Nick

October 30, 2009

Hey, I love these effects…but I’m using a school-issued Macintosh Running Leopard.
My school blocked any and all installers that edit the Applications folder, so I can’t install More iChat Effects.
Is there any place that has the individual .qtz files for download?

Nick

November 1, 2009

Okay, I think I figured out part of the problem.
The installer skips past the destination select, no matter what I do. So, it’s installing for all users, which I can’t do, because one of the users is “admin” so, obviously, I’d need the admin password.

chase

November 7, 2009

ive deleted the effects in the composition folder but it still has the effects that say demo and stuff. how do i COMPLETELY delete all the effects and start with the basic photo booth.
this fucked up my comp

JLS

Melissa Wolf

Jackson Chung

November 23, 2009

Depending on the user-level for which you save these effects (for â€˜All Usersâ€™ or for â€˜This User Onlyâ€™), they will either be saved in /Users/{your username}/Library/Compositions or /Library/Compositions. In order to remove unwanted effects, just delete them from the appropriate folder. Keep in mind that if you add a lot of new effects at once, Photo Booth will crash while loading them. Itâ€™s best to add one set at a time.

John

kate

December 10, 2009

I am having the same problem with the “open in 32 bit mode” and “open using rosetta.” I just bought my macbook about two days ago and even the sales associate told me to download these effects but that it was mandatory to change it to 32 bit mode. however, when I pull up the “get info” window for photobooth and ichat, there is no checkbox for 32 bit mode. the effects are working, but I have noticed that my computer runs slower and I don’t want it to crash. please help.

novat

Kate

Meg

December 29, 2009

Hey I uploaded this photo effects then later found apple got these effects and i want to delete the other effects but it is asking me for a password for my admin account on the computer. But for some reason it wont delete and then it says it sent a message to the creater of the effects for making up passwords when i didn’t AND I JUST WANT TO DELETE IT!

Michelle

December 30, 2009

I downloaded the Cat Eye ones
I found that they were really slow and after a few minutes they would just go blank on the screen, I went to the finder they weren’t in the Compositions but under devices it had them listed so I dragged them to the trash and emptied that. I couldn’t find them stored anywhere on my account other than where I deleted them from.

I went back to Photobooth and they were still there!!!!!! I dont know what I am doing wrong, I dont want to download them again I just want them gone!! Im really upset and just want them gone… please help me!!!!!!

zac

zac

Brandon

January 9, 2010

hey dude thanks these effects are awesome! i coldnt jump through squares for a while but once it crahshes if u report it it kinda works better, most of them when i tae a pic they come out with the color distorted and stuff… can u help?